Every year brides across America attempt the impossible. A 4th of July inspired wedding without doing the impossible — going overboard with, well 4th of July.

The path to a successful Americana wedding is simple. Focus on the accents and small details. Staying away from the “traditional” striped red white and blue linens that first come to mind is key. Focus on fun details that your guests will enjoy which will not turn your wedding looking like a 4th of July Bar-B-Que — even if it’s an outdoors wedding.

Another great suggestion for a 4th of July inspired weddings — Try choosing different hues of blue. Red and aquas really compliment each other and are fun and festive together. With these color combos, you are sure to see fireworks.

Did You Know?

The blue has been connected to weddings for centuries. In ancient Rome, brides wore blue to symbolize love, modesty, and fidelity. Christianity has long dressed the Virgin Mary in blue, so purity was associated with the color. Before the late 19th century, blue was a popular color for wedding gowns as evidenced in proverbs like, “Marry in blue, lover be true.”

I checked the calendar last night and realized, OMG! Valentine’s Day is only two weeks away!

Although this holiday always seems to sneak up on me, I do love the frilly romance and oh ya. The chocolate that defines it. So, let the color inspiration, crafting ideas and indulgent dessert recipes begin!

Thanks to Camile Styles, we have an amazing ispiration board to start off some fun V-Day ideas.”Today’s board is more about rich, dark chocolate than sugary candy hearts; a lush bunch of peonies on the table for a sophisticated candlelit dinner at home. I love the contrast of girly pink set against a moody dark background…rather sexy, no? Stay tuned for lots more Valentine’s planning ideas over the next couple of weeks.” Be Insprired. Stay Fabulous.

I’ve always wondered what is the best way to start an “end of the year” blog post and what exactly do you say? I recall a few months ago I couldn’t wait for 2011 to go away. It was not shaping up to end on a high note.

I had dinner with my beautiful, insightful and talented friend Sigi Farkash (owner of Design by SIG) who bluntly and clearly said to me. “Your diamond is right in front of you. sometimes you just need to dig deeper and invest more effort to see it and hold it in your hand.” She had some other descriptives which we will not go into, but the point is — she was right.

So after that evening, I had that conversation twirling in my mind for a few weeks which lead me to think about what I would like to be doing in 2012? And than that call came. So I am ending my 2011 on a very high note as I joined the Israeli Leadership Council (ILC) family in the past two weeks to oversee and manage a huge event “Celebrate Israel” – A community-wide event celebrating Israel’s 64th Independence Day which you will hear about from me in various forms in the next 4 months. I am humbled and honored to be in the presence of such an amazing group of people. Truly.

So 2011 —- I had a great year, and enjoyed being a wedding planner for so many happy couples. I’ve learned that not all amazing weddings have to be in Los Angeles! I actually knew that — but really enjoyed being a part of Gladys & Peter’s wedding in Temecula. It was so romantic and just — perfect.

I have so many unforgetable moments from this year, it’s hard to summerize it in words… but I’ve been told that photos help to do so many times. Below are some (but not all) of the events that I take with me this year as the most memorable ones.

I am thankful for all that I do, greatful to my family and friends that love me and are always there for me. Althought 2011 is ending on a high point, honestly goodbye 2011 and hello 2012. Can’t wait to see what this years has to offer. BRING IT ON.

When I first started working on Rachie & Ellie’s wedding in mid-April, I knew this wedding was going to be a truly unique and inspiring wedding. Not just because this was a modern Orthodox Jewish wedding taking place on a ranch or because of of the very short timeline I had to plan the wedding (the wedding was Aug 14), but because my first meeting was with the father of the bride who hired me before I ever met the bride and groom and knew every small detail his daughter would love for her wedding. It was a first for me.

I’ve had the pleasure of coordinating many Jewish weddings. Orthodox Jewish weddings always take extra planning and attention to details as they have their own unique traditions and etiquettes which need to be followed closely by the direction of the family. This Orthodox wedding did have a modern flair to it because of the design elements and details that were incorporated into the wedding, which made it that much more unique. The bride and groom had a very hip style which made this wedding that much fun. Mixing modern ideas with old Jewish wedding traditions made this wedding truly inspiring to work on.

The bride had a passion for all things yellow and royal blue which we made sure were highlighted and accented throughout the wedding. This included the flowers, lemonade stand with blue and yellow vintage straws purchased on etsy.com and custom vintage signs made by Magic Wand Weddings. We also found the groom’s strong love for Western music and made sure this was incorporated into their wedding memories by the amazing photography of John Solano. The fabulous floral design was by none other that Sonny Alexander Florists in Los Angeles. Corey who helped work on the concept incorporated the bride’s yellow and blue color concept into all the center pieces. Tables had different design elements throughout which made it so appealing to the eye.

Change of shoes were for sure the highlight of the wedding. From satin sandals to cowboy boots for both the bride and groom to my favorite bubblegum colored platform Converse All-Star shoes to give the petite bride some height and comfort.

Decor included amazing 8 and 10ft spheres by Shape Events
that were hung throughout the ballroom and illuminated in blue hughes and a 12ft sphere that overlooked the pond and illuminated the bride and groom’s name.

I always get excited when I am set with a challage. Clients don’t always realize this internal challage that is set by them, but most often it is with the venue that the choose. The venue is often selected and than I am explained of their dream event… Walking into a green carpet room with wall to wall mirrors a la circa 1970 with matching green padded chairs doesn’t always make for a good start to make magic happen. The first thing I’m thinking when I walk into this room is white draping for the whole room…. Event Pros LA took this challange on and transformed the room into magic.

Not only was the room magical, but the event itself was so special. We had a very unique young with special needs to Bar Mitzvah and to make it a memorable day for him as well as his family The room was transformed by amazing draping with vivid terquoise, blue and silver color and no one remembered the green carpets or the mirrors. IT doesn’t hurt when you also have an amazing photographer like Linda Kasian who knows to capture the most precious moments each and everytime.

Years ago, brides were using small sashes and ribbons to accent their whole white wedding which was thought of as unique and creative. Today, brides are using an array of hues to cover every inch of their wedding, to bring out their personality in their decor, flowers, dresses and shoes.

For the past several seasons, brides have been wearing blue shoes and really getting creative with blue details throughout their wedding reception. Below is an inspiration board by Event Pros LA to help our brides that love the color blue and want some fabulous ideas for their upcoming wedding.

Some of our favorite weddings have been incorporating blue details such as chair cover sashes, blue shade glass cylinders in the middle of the table to give your blue wedding different blue hues and accents. Another fun idea to incorporate blue into your special day is through your bridesmaids. Why not find a stunning blue dress to accent the wedding. It can really make a bold statement!